Pekhov Alexey – Letos

The world has survived monstrous cataclysms caused by magical wars in the past. Magic caused a cataclysm, and magic left along with the last magicians. What remains are pitiful crumbs of its former greatness, accessible only to a few. The cataclysm was not in vain for the world - entire cities went underwater or were destroyed, and deserts formed in their place.

The atmosphere of the post-apocalypse is maintained like never before. It is not the more familiar one for the reader, associated with a nuclear war, but a magical one, which turned out to be no less destructive. At first glance, ordinary people continue to live their lives. However, vulgar events remind them of themselves through dangerous natural phenomena, mutated animals, or dead people turning into bloodthirsty creatures.

The main action takes place on the islands that were once part of the great state of magicians. A part of the territory has sunk underwater, and the remaining pitiful remnants of the population are forced to live in constant fear. After all, anyone who dies after sunset turns into a bloodthirsty creature that begins to kill everyone around, thereby only increasing the number of its own kind. Moreover, the risen dead are not like traditional zombies. They are fast, tenacious, and can degenerate into more dangerous forms over time. The only ones who can resist the creatures on equal terms are the remnants of the once-existing order of necromancers. Moreover, they have not killed for a long time to raise the dead to participate in battles. On the contrary, they are defenders, vigilantly fighting the living dead and keeping constant vigil in every settlement.

There are three very different main characters. An acrobat who devoted his entire life to traveling and improving his skills. He is the most positive and closest character to the reader, who, despite his youth, has seen enough but has not become bitter. However, his love for excavations in ancient ruins turned out to be fatal and now he has acquired a magical mark and is running away from the mercenaries looking for him. In contrast to him, there is a hired killer of a legendary clan that arose from the ancient order of demon-fighting magicians. She is unsociable, cynical, cruel, and running away from her own colleagues. They seem like complete opposites, but fate forced them to travel together. The third companion is a necromancer girl who, in her desire to save her loved one, is forced to leave her hometown and begin a journey to the epicenter of a war that raged in the past, from which no one has returned for a long time. Having magical abilities, she is practically unable to use them against ordinary dangers - only against the dead.

Special attention is paid to the past greatness, which today's people can only dream of. Giant statues that used to be Thebes, entire cities that went underwater - at every step, the heroes encounter fragments of their past lives.

A rather gloomy atmosphere aggravates the almost complete absence of positive characters. Almost all people who belong to the upper strata of society turn out to be quite unpleasant individuals, although there are not many of them in the plot. But the common people, whom the heroes most often encounter, do not live, but rather exist. Although there is sometimes room for joy here, the overall atmosphere still smacks of hopelessness.

The names of races and magical creatures are slightly confusing, as they are not explained in any way in the plot, and the reader has to figure out who is who for themselves. Although a sort of “historical excursion” is given along the course of the plot, much still remains unclear. The reader must figure everything out for themselves, although it can be assumed that much will be explained in subsequent books. After all, the heroes are also forced to collect information bit by bit from the past that can help on their journey.

Despite the darkness, the book is quite interesting to read. However, it's worth waiting for the next books in the series.

Unusual types of heroes

A very atmospheric world that survived a magical cataclysm

Gloomy atmosphere

There is little information about the world, a lot can be judged only by indirect mentions